1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a pivot-hung door drive system with an electro-mechanical or electro-hydraulic device that supplies the opening and closing moment required to open and close a connected pivot-hung door panel.
2. Background Information
German Patent No. 41 24 282 C2 describes a pivot-hung or swinging or swiveling door drive system in which the connected door is automatically opened electro-mechanically by the pivot-hung door drive system. The closing process is carried out with the assistance of the motor drive by an integrated closing spring which can be located in a commercially available door closer, for example. In that case, a reduced drive moment is applied to the motor drive, whereby the motor only makes up the losses in the gear train. This type of control eliminates the need for a continuous engagement of the coupling, and simultaneously results in reduced wear, because the coupling does not need to be re-engaged for the reversing process of the pivot-hung door. This pivot-hung door drive system is equipped with a scissors-type linkage.
Such a drive system can be installed on the door frame or on the door. In addition to the scissors-type or pantograph linkage described above, a parallel linkage and a slide rail in connection with a straight actuator arm can also be used. While the closing moments for scissors-type and parallel linkages are sufficient for standard tasks, the closing moments or movements for the closing process are generally very low when a slide rail is used.
German Patent No. 37 30 114 A1 describes a device for opening and closing doors that consists of two mounting parts. The one part is fastened to the door leaf and the other part of the device is fastened on the frame side, whereby the two mounting parts are connected to each other by a force transmission mechanism. At the same time, there is a reversing mechanism with a locking coupling, which simultaneously limits the forces to be transmitted. For this purpose, conventional, commercially available door closers can be used, although they must have a closing spring. The drive wheel of the device, which is connected on one end with the force transmission mechanism, has a pinion which is effectively connected with a rack.
WO 89/11578 describes a drive system for a pivot-hung door that operates in a similar fashion. In this case, there is a device for the opening process, and the closing process is accomplished, as in DE 41 24 282 C2, by the force of a door closer.
Similar drive systems for pivot-hung doors are described in U.S. Pat. No. 1,684,704 and U.S. Pat. No. 2,256,613. There again, drive systems are described in connection with door closers, although the door closer is installed as a separate component on the door panel, and the drive system for the pivot-hung door is located above the door panel. The connection between the drive system for the pivot-hung door and the door closer is in the form of a scissors-type linkage. U.S. Pat. No. 4,333,270 discloses a drive system for a pivot-hung door that works electro-magnetically. In this case, a drive wheel interacts with a rack, so that a spring for the closing of the door is stretched during the opening process.
German Patent No. 32 02 930 A1 discloses an electro-mechanical pivot-hung door drive system that uses a direct-current motor in connection with a planetary gear train for the drive system. There is a toggle lever linkage between the output shaft and the connected door. This drive system for a pivot-hung door is used for both the opening process and the closing process of the door to which it is connected.
An advertising brochure published by DORMA GmbH+Co. KG describes an electro-hydraulic drive system designated Model ED 200 designed for use with a pivot-hung door. The drive system in question is a compact drive unit that opens the door against the force of a spring and mechanically returns the door to the closed position using the restoring forces of the spring. This drive system can thereby be installed on the door frame or on the door. In this system, an electric motor drives a pump which pumps a corresponding volume of oil into a hydraulic cylinder, which in turn expands against the force of a spring. The piston of the hydraulic cylinder is thereby provided with gear teeth that drive a pinion, to which the lever mechanism that actuates the door is attached. To return the door to the closed position, appropriate valves are opened and the volume of oil can flow back into the reservoir of the drive unit. The spring thereby pushes the piston back and closes the door by its movement, which is transmitted to the pinion.
One object of the present invention is therefore to improve a pivot-hung door drive system described in some publications so that, to avoid the above-mentioned disadvantages, an essentially simple construction and an essentially easy adaptation to the desired torque curves over the opening angle become possible.
The object can be accomplished, in at least one embodiment according to the present invention, in a pivot-hung door drive system, in which there can be a device that effects a change in the opening and closing moment over the angle of rotation of a corresponding pivot-hung door panel. Additional possible embodiments of the present invention are described in the features shown herein.
The present invention teaches that the force curve/torque curve that changes over the opening angle of a door or swivelling panel can be influenced during both the opening and the closing of the door by means of a transmission in the form of a device with a translation ratio that varies over the opening angle, which translation ratio can substantially easily be achieved by easily manufactured eccentrically located gear wheels that have a circular gear rim.
The present invention therefore teaches a transmission that varies its translation ratio over the opening angle or angle of rotation of the door and can have a first and a second gear wheel that are engaged with each other and are each formed by a circular gear rim, which gear wheels are mounted so that they retain their axial separation eccentrically with respect to their center points. The first gear wheel can be connected with an output shaft and the second gear wheel can be connected with a gear wheel of the drive device, whereby the axis of rotation of the output shaft runs through the center of motion of the first gear wheel, and whereby essentially everything is arranged so that the eccentricity of the gear wheels that results from the center point of a gear wheel and the new center of motion lies substantially centrically symmetric or point-symmetric to their pitch point.
The torque curves can then be substantially easily defined and determined by the selection of the eccentricity, the pitch circle diameter and the resulting distance between the axes of rotation of the two gear wheels. Many different translation ratios can thereby become possible, and thus the ability to adapt the system to the desired torque characteristic over the opening angle, without the need to manufacture special cam plates.
Instead, the present invention teaches that commercially available gear wheels can be used, which can significantly reduce the manufacturing costs. The gear wheels can in particular have standard gearing or gear design.
The magnitude of the eccentricity can be described by the ratio of the magnitude of the eccentricity to the base circle diameter. In particular, this ratio should not exceed a ratio value of 0.137 for gearings according to DIN 867. The transmission action of the transmission, however, deteriorates significantly when this value is exceeded, because the profile overlap can drop below 1.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the pivot-hung door drive system can be realized in the form of a top-mounted drive with a lever arm which effectively varies over the range of rotation between a coupling point of the swinging door panel and another coupling point outside the swinging panel, which lever arm can be engaged with the output shaft.
The effective lever arm can be preferably formed by a slide-rail linkage and a toggle-lever linkage.
As an alternative to the configuration described above, the drive system for the pivot-hung door can also be realized in the form of an under-floor drive system, in which case the output shaft interacts with the bearing of the swinging door panel.
A possible object of the present invention, in at least one possible embodiment, may be accomplished by the fact that between the output shaft of the Divot-hung door system and the linkage or the actuator arm, there may be a device that effects a change in the opening and closing moment over the angle of rotation of the pivot-hung door panel.
It is desirable to increase the moments for the closing range in the range of essentially small door opening angles, for example.
In one possible embodiment of the present invention, the present invention may include a door piston that is guided in a housing, whereby the drive shaft or output shaft of the door piston may be connected to a door by means of an actuator arm or a linkage. There may also be an energy storage mechanism in the form of a spring, which spring can store energy during the opening of the door and can release it again for a subsequent automatic closing process.
In another possible embodiment of the present invention, the present invention may include a door closer, which door closer may have at least two different translation ratios, as a function of direction and of the distance traveled by the door, whereby a fixed or solid coupling between the opening force and the closing force applied to the door may be neutralized by the fact that, between the spring and the door piston, there may be at least one hydraulic transmission, which hydraulic transmission may include at least one spring piston, the door piston, and an inner piston inside the door piston, as well as a chamber that is defined by the inner piston and a housing surrounding the inner piston.
In other words, in another possible embodiment of the present invention, the present invention may include a door closer such that with a usually high closing moment, only a usually small opening moment is required to open the door. The small opening moment and high closing moment may be accomplished in that a fixed coupling or translation ratio between the pinion and the output shaft, and thus between the opening and closing force, is not maintained during the opening and closing processes of the invention, which means that the translation ratio between the pinion and the output shaft changes as the door is opened and closed. A hydraulic transmission between the rack and pinion and the actuator arm, which actuator arm actuates the door, may permit a door closer to be configured such that it may generate a high closing moment or force for closing the door but only a small opening moment or force for opening the door. Under certain very special circumstances, the opposite effect may be desirable.
As a result of the translation or conversion of the translation movement of the piston into a rotational movement of the pinion, there is a variation of the reference diameter. The pinion moments can be adjusted by means of the variable lever arm, while the piston or peripheral force on the output pinion remains constant. At the same time, on account of the greater spring force, this or the piston or the peripheral force on the output pinion can be reduced by the interposition of a transmission between the output shaft and linkage. The present invention also teaches that it is possible to reduce the spring travel by means of a further variation of the reference diameter. The curve of the closing moment can be a superimposition of the influences of the translation or transmission function, or the reference diameter and of the spring force curve.
The pinions used in some publications, in contrast to the pinions in the present invention, have a pitch or rolling curve profile that is composed of segmentally constant radii. An example of the solution used for the constructive integration of the variable reference or pitch circle diameter is the principle described in German Patent No. 36 45 313 C2. The result, for the matching gearing associated with the toothed pinion, for example, is a stretched-out S-shaped pitch curve. By an appropriate selection of the profile of the Ditch curve and of the flank angle, the objective is thereby to minimize the friction resulting from the guide wall of the toothed rack. The pinion-side gearing can have varied profile displacements over its pitch curve. In the range of large door opening angles, i.e. of small pitch circle diameters, the gearing can be displaced radially outward by positive profile displacement. Accordingly, a profile displacement in the opposite direction can be made on the toothed rack. The gearing also can have a modulus which varies over the pitch curve. The modulus can be thereby only great enough so that the strength of the gearing is sufficient. The results described here were obtained empirically.
In one possible embodiment of the present invention, the present invention teaches that the desired variable translation ratio may be achieved most efficiently by a separation or decoupling of the necessary lever length changes of the transmission from the function of the conversion of the rotational motion. The result is not only a wide variety of potential adaptations to desired torque curves, but also a greatly economical construction.
In other words, in one possible embodiment of the present invention, there may not be a fixed coupling or translation ratio between the pinion and the output shaft, and thus between the opening and closing force, during the opening and closing processes of the present invention. For example, there may be a hydraulic transmission between the rack and pinion and the actuator arm, which actuator arm actuates the door. Such a transmission may permit a door closer to be configured such that it may generate a high closing moment or force for closing the door but only a small opening moment or force for opening the door. Under certain very special circumstances, the opposite effect may be desirable.
To further explain, the present invention may permit a door to be opened gradually, closed gradually, or opened and closed gradually, without slamming, yanking, or pulling, and without sudden lurches, jerks, swings, or stops. The present invention may also permit a door to be opened suddenly or with an essentially large amount of force, closed suddenly or with an essentially large amount of force, or opened and closed suddenly or with an essentially large amount of forcexe2x80x94that is, with slamming, jerking, yanking, or pulling, and with sudden lurches, jerks, swings, or stops. The present invention may further permit the door to be opened gradually and slammed shut or shut suddenly or shut with an essentially great amount of force, or permit the door to be opened suddenly or opened with a great amount of force and shut gradually.
Therefore, in another possible embodiment of the present invention, the present invention teaches the interposition of a device between the output shaft of the pivot-hung door drive system and the force transmission mechanism. The interposed transmission, for example, thereby may transmit an essentially optimum reference circle curve, as a result of which the necessary change in the length of the lever can be separated from the function of the conversion of the translation movement of the piston motion into the rotational movement of the lever. A toothed rack may thereby be paired with a conventional pinion.
In other words, in one possible embodiment of the present invention, the output shaft or closer shaft may be actuated by a spring system in the closing direction. Also, an end of the output shaft or closer shaft may extend out of the door closer housing. The end of the output shaft or closer shaft may be coupled and connected to one end of a linkage arm, an effective lever arm, a slide rail linkage, or an actuator arm, so that the other end of the linkage arm, effective lever arm, slide rail linkage, or actuator arm may interact with a sliding block of a slide rail.
In yet another possible embodiment of the present invention, the present invention teaches that the transmission that varies its translation ratio over the closing and opening angle of the door therefore may have a guide connected with an output shaft and a driver roller that can be moved in a translation movement in this guide, which driver roller can be connected with a pinion that is engaged in a toothed rack that is coupled to the spring system, whereby the axis of rotation of the output shaft and the axis of rotation of the pinion, as well as the axis of rotation of the driver roller and the axis of rotation of the pinion, are located at essentially pre-determined distances from each other, so that when the output shaft and the pinion rotate, the translation ratio may change as a result of the varying axial distance between the output shaft and the driver roller.
In still another possible embodiment of the present invention, the axis of rotation of the driver roller can intersect the pitch circle of the pinion and can be oriented essentially parallel to the axis of rotation of the pinion. The result can be a substantially compact and space-saving construction, but one which essentially simultaneously can take into consideration the desired variable translation ratios over the opening angle of the door panel of the door with which the system is associated.
In other words, the present invention may display several advantages over the known art. For example, the present invention may permit greatly compact and space-saving construction and thus permit the installation of a door drive or door closer in a substantially small space or on an essentially small door or door frame. Also, the present invention may be substantially economical because it may permit substantially simple constructionxe2x80x94that is, construction involving an essentially small number of partsxe2x80x94and because the present invention may, for instance, permit use of an essentially weak spring. Additionally, the present invention may greatly reduce wear on the parts and components of the door drive systemxe2x80x94for example, the spring, the piston or piston-cylinder structure, and the rack.
The translation ratio of the transmission may be determined by the pitch circle diameter of the pinion, the distance of the axis of rotation of the output shaft from the axis of rotation of the pinion, and by the distance of the driver roller from the axis of rotation of the pinion. By varying these individual values, the translation ratio and thus the torque curve of the pivot-hung door drive system can be varied over the opening angle of the door panel. The result can be different translation ratios and thus the ability to adapt the system to the desired torque characteristics over the opening angle, in which essentially only the above-mentioned components and values may need to be changed.
In one possible embodiment of the invention, the drive system for the pivot-hung door may be realized with an effective lever arm between a coupling point on the rotationally movable door panel of the associated door and an additional coupling point outside the door panel, which lever arm may be varied over the range of rotation and may be engaged with the output shaft.
In another possible embodiment of the invention, the effective lever arm is preferably formed by a slide rail arm.
In other words, the actuator arm or effective lever arm may be formed as a slide rail linkage. The slide rail linkage may be engaged in a guide rail by use of a slide, which may be located at the other end of the actuator arm or effective lever arm.
In yet another possible embodiment of the invention, the effective lever arm or actuator arm or linkage may be formed by a scissors-type or pantograph or parallel linkage arrangement.
In yet another possible embodiment of the invention, the effective lever arm or actuator arm or linkage may be formed by a toggle-lever arrangement.
Someone skilled in the art would be able to determine the characteristics of the drive system based, for example, upon the weight and size of the door, the location in which the door is installed, the purpose or purposes for which the door is used, the circumstances under which the door is used or installed, and the type of linkage or actuator arm used.
The above discussed embodiments of the present invention will be described further hereinbelow with reference to the accompanying figures. When the word xe2x80x9cinventionxe2x80x9d is used in this specification, the word xe2x80x9cinventionxe2x80x9d includes xe2x80x9cinventionsxe2x80x9d, that is, the plural of xe2x80x9cinventionxe2x80x9d. By stating xe2x80x9cinventionxe2x80x9d, the Applicants do not in any way admit that the present application does not include more than one patentably and non-obviously distinct invention, and maintains that this application may include more than one patentably and non-obviously distinct invention. The Applicants hereby assert that the disclosure of this application may include more than one invention, and, in the event that there is more than one invention, that these inventions may be patentable and non-obvious one with respect to the other.